Ex-Sohar Port executive appointed CEO of $300 million textile venture

Business Reporter -

MUSCAT, MAY 9 -

Sohar Port and Freezone has announced that Neelima Vyas (pictured) has stepped down from her role as Director International and, as of May 6, has been appointed as the CEO of SV Pittie Sohar (the Shri Vallabh Pittie Group) Oman, the company responsible for the establishment of a $300 million cotton yarn manufacturing plant within the Sohar Freezone.

Commenting on Neelima’s departure, Mark Geilenkirchen, Chief Executive Officer of Sohar Port and Freezone said, “I would like extend my sincere thanks and appreciation for all the hard work and professionalism with which Neelima Vyas carried out her duties. She has been an invaluable asset to the team and contributed to the immense growth of Sohar . We wish her every success in her new role as CEO of SV Pittie Oman.”

“The establishment of the SV Pittie Cotton Yarn Plant is the first step in establishing downstream industries in the textile sector. The new plant, coupled with our highly competitive logistics facilities, energy rates and a young, well-educated local workforce, opens up a number of future opportunities for investments in knitting, weaving, spinning, and fabric manufacturing, which could in turn create a thriving industrial cluster providing substantial new job opportunities within the local community. With Neelima Vyas at the helm, the company will see great success here at Sohar ,” added Jamal Aziz, Chief Executive Officer of the Sohar Freezone.

The $300 million ShriVallabh Pittie Group (SV Pittie) cotton yarn manufacturing plant, to be located at the Sohar Freezone, is expected to begin commissioning later this year with commercial operations following early 2019. The plant is expected to import 100,000tpa of cotton through Sohar Port, from the USA, Australia and India. It will produce finished yarn which will then be exported to textile markets such as China, Bangladesh, Turkey and Pakistan. The high precision plant and machinery will result in the first of its kind state of the art facility in the region.

“I would like to extend my sincere thanks and appreciation to everyone at Sohar for all their support and hard work. Having been with the port and free zone from almost its inception as Executive Manager Finance and Strategy, and then Freezone COO, the association has been fulfilling and enriching,” said Neelima.